1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to casino card games, and more specifically, it relates to a card game that allows a player to place three wagers and an optional insurance wager and requires a player to win each consecutive wager before advancing to a subsequent wager.
2. Description of Related Art
Many card games of skill and chance currently exist but suffer numerous drawbacks making them undesirable to certain casino patrons. Some types of card games are difficult to learn and require a large degree of skill to play. Blackjack and Poker are examples of games that require a high degree of skill. Many casino patrons avoid games such as poker because the players perceive that they are at a disadvantage playing against more experienced players. Those inexperienced players who do play these card games often do not enjoy the play of the games, because they do not possess sufficient knowledge of the game to play competitively. Less experienced players are sometimes criticized and intimidated by more experienced players when they deviate from common game strategies. For example, an inexperienced player may draw cards when optimal game strategy dictates otherwise. Such actions will annoy more experienced players, especially when they feel that the card(s) dealt to the inexperienced player would have enhanced his, her or their hand(s).
Other card games are easy to learn, but are less exciting to play. Games such as xe2x80x9cCasino War,xe2x80x9d as described in Boylan, U.S. Pat. No. 5,324,041, provide a lower level of excitement as compared to other casino type card games and may be viewed as undesirable for play by numerous players who prefer to play games requiring a higher level of skill. In the game of Casino War, the dealer deals one card to each player and one card to himself face up. Bets are resolved individually, player by player. If the dealer has the high card, he takes the player""s ante bet. If the player""s card is the high card, he is paid 1:1 on the ante. In the case of a tie, xc2xd of the ante is returned to the player, or the player places a second wager. If the second wager is made, both the dealer and player receive an extra card. If the dealer""s card beats the player""s card, the dealer takes the first and second bet. If the player""s card is the high card, he is paid 1:1 on the second bet, and the first bet is a push. If there is another tie, the bets are returned to the player. Although this game has achieved some degree of commercial success, the game lacks the action of other live casino games. It would be desirable to provide a card game that is suitable for casino play, is exciting, provides sufficient action to maintain player interest and is easy to learn.
The present invention is a variation of a high/low card game. A typical layout design includes six or seven player stations, although the number of stations can vary. According to one method of play, at the beginning of play of the game, each player places at least two, and more typically three wagers, each wager being preferably equal in amount, one wager each on separate betting areas within the player""s station. These at least two or at least three wagers are preferably mandatory and not optional or sequentially placed at the beginning of play. The player may place an optional insurance wager. The insurance wager, also called the Ace-Face bet, provides the player with an immediate payout if the dealer""s first card is an Ace or a face card (meaning a King, Queen or Jack of any suit). In one specific embodiment, all bets are equal in amount, including the optional insurance wager. In another specific embodiment, all bets must be equal except for the insurance bet or insurance wager. In a third embodiment, each of the bets are or may be unequal.
During play, the dealer deals a single card to each player, preferably face up. He then delivers a card to himself, again preferably face up. If the rank of the player""s card is determined to beat the rank of the dealer""s card, the player is paid on the first bet or first wager. Only if the player wins the first wager, and if the player has placed at least one additional bet (which at least one additional bet is preferably mandatory at the beginning of the game), does the player qualify to play an additional, consecutively played game segment. Next, the dealer deals a second card (preferably) face up to the player. He then deals himself a second card. If the rank of the player""s card is determined to be higher than that of the dealer""s card, the player is then paid on the second bet. The player may only advance to a second additional game segment of the game if the player placed a third bet, and the rank of the second card of the player beats the rank of the dealer""s second card. Similar to the play of the first segment and the second segment, in the third round of play, player and dealer each receive a card (preferably face up), and if the player""s third card rank exceeds the dealer""s third card rank, the player is paid on the third wager or third bet. Although any number of sequential rounds can be played, one preferred form of play includes placing three separate wagers or bets to play three distinct game segments.
If the rank of the player and dealer cards are equal within a single segment, that segment results in a xe2x80x9cpushxe2x80x9d and according to one embodiment, the player receives his wager back. If the xe2x80x9cpushxe2x80x9d occurs in the first segment of the game, the player receives each of his wagers back. If the push occurs in the second segment of the game, he receives all but his first bet back. If the push occurs in the third segment of the game, he only receives his third wager back. In one example of the invention, the insurance wager or insurance bet is returned when the first round is a push. Alternatively, the insurance bet is not returned to the player when there is a push in the first segment.
If the player and the dealer both receive as a first card, an Ace or face card, the player is paid on the Ace-Face insurance bet, if an insurance wager was made. Under an alternate form of play, when the player and the dealer tie on the first bet with an Ace-face card, the player is paid 2:1 on the first bet, and the second and third bets are a push. The cards are normally regarded with respect to traditional ranking in decks, with the highest to the lowest rank going from Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, and 2. In yet another embodiment, the player receives from 2:1 to 5:1 (such as 5:2, or 3:1) on the Ace-Face bet, when the dealer""s card is an Ace. The insurance bet is collected or paid based on the rank of the dealer card. The rank of the player card is irrelevant to the settling this wager.
Because the higher payouts, later described in the payoffs of this game, depend on the player winning sequential rounds of play, there is more action as compared to other known forms of high/low. The game is simpler to play than poker or blackjack, for example, because the game lacks strategic decisions relating to drawing, discarding or taking hits, and is believed to have more widespread appeal. It is simple to understand because it is a variant of a high/low card game. Although the game segments are played independently, the segments are related and depend upon each other because the rules require the player to win at least one segment before advancing to the next consecutive segment.
It is also within the purview of this invention to play a lowball equivalent of the game as already described. For example, Aces may be low (or retained as high), and the game objective is for the player to receive a card lower than the dealer""s card. Bonuses may be paid with an Ace and a 2-4, and 2""s, 3""s and 4""s may be treated equivalently as the face cards were in the high card game described above. The player may be offered an option of playing a high game or a low game before any cards are dealt. This would most likely require different wagering positions or an electronic indicator to identify the election made by the player to reduce any confusion on the part of the dealer in assessing hands.